The statements given by various US officials during the last few days serve as a grim reminder of the troubles that lie ahead. Frustrated with their faltering campaign in Afghanistan, which has already become a decade-long bumpy road to nowhere, the Americans had to find the much-needed ‘bad guy’ and Pakistan fits the bill. It was up to our leadership to make sure that the flames of the Afghan war did not burn us. It failed to do so. As a result yet another massive failure stares us in the face. Consequences of a failure in this case are both far-reaching and damaging. We must be among the very few, if not the only, countries in the world to suffer the most in terms of human, material and social costs in a war imposed on us. While foreign powers must have their own agendas to accomplish, and will not stop at anything to get what they want, it is up to us as to how we take a course which is both in line with protecting our real national interests and is practically navigable. While it is very easy to identify our external foes, the difficult part of identifying and rectifying our internal failures needs be undertaken seriously. We must remember that the cost of delay in deciding what must be done for the protection of our core interests is way beyond our ability to afford. We should also know that foreign policy cannot, and should not, be decided on the streets. There are other better, and more appropriate, forums to do it. Time is running out and we have to act fast.
ALAMGIR KHAN,
Lahore, May 10.